22 Great Ways with Blue Cheese

In this modern twist on a retro appetizer, endive leaves, being naturally scooped and crunchy, make a refreshing alternative to potato chips.

Recipe: Endive “Chips” with Blue Cheese Dip and Bacon Dust

We cut this tart up into small pieces for an elegant appetizer, but you could also slice it into large wedges and serve it with a green salad for a light meal.

Recipe: Blue Cheese and Pear Tart

This is a great appetizer combo of sweet, creamy, and salty. You can assemble the dates ahead and heat them when ready to serve.

Recipe: Warm Dates with Soft Blue Cheese and Prosciutto

Pick your party: Easygoing or swanky?

If your style is easygoing, think of these as mini-pizzas, irresistibly topped with blue cheese. For a swank affair, casually mention to guests that you made the yeasted semolina dough by hand, and serve these rich rounds at cocktail hour. (Nobody needs to know how easy it was.)

Either way, serve with a slightly off-dry Riesling for a festive pairing made in pizza heaven.

Recipe: Red Onion and Gorgonzola Flatbread

Sweet, caramel-tinged pears and sharp blue cheese make a perfect salty-sweet combo in this delicious appetizer.

Recipe: Caramelized Pear and Sage Crostini

We especially like this creamy soup with Point Reyes Original Blue. For an added bit of indulgence, sprinkle with crumbled bacon.

Recipe: Broccoli Soup with Blue Cheese

The simple addition of caramelized apples and salty blue cheese gives this tasty soup a sophisticated feel.

Recipe: Celery Soup with Apples and Blue Cheese

Reader Margee Berry, of White Salmon, WA, combined the best flavors of pub fare in this recipe for hearty blue cheese noodles. We prefer it with a beer that’s a little bitter, such as an IPA, but feel free to use whatever you have in the fridge. You could also omit the beer and use a little of the pasta water if you like.

Recipe: Blue Cheese, Mustard, and Beer Noodles

You want delicious? You want easy? You want a Cobb salad. Store-bought chicken finds a friend in pungent blue cheese and applewood-smoked bacon, tied together with crispy-licious lettuce and surprisingly sophisticated watercress. This classic has everything, plus a little extra.

Recipe: Cobb Salad

Perk up a green salad with juicy-sweet berries and flavorful blue cheese crumbles. A dish this peppery and refreshing needs only a simple vinaigrette to finish.

Recipe: Marionberry, Blue Cheese, and Arugula Salad

Tasty, gorgeous, easy: Savory bacon, creamy avocado, crispy endive, and sharp gorgonzola tossed with a simple sherry vinaigrette. May I have some more?

Recipe: Endive Salad with Bacon, Gorgonzola, and Avocado

Wimpy lunch? Not this knockout sandwich. Crunchy bread gets a creamy kick from blue cheese and mayo; top it with chicken and avocado. It's an extra-special midday pick-me-up, or an all-in-one weeknight dinner.

Recipe: Chicken, Bacon, and Blue-Cheese Sandwiches

Play with the classic beef-and-blue combo. Rich steak matched with a sweet-tart pear-onion relish gets a flavor boost from tangy blue cheese and a healthy dose of spinach greens.

Recipe: Sliced Filet Mignon Wrap with Pear-Onion Relish and Blue-Cheese Dressing

Cheeseburgers get a makeover with ground chicken and gourmet toppings. They're even better served with a cold beer.

Recipe: Chicken Burgers with Caramelized Shallots and Blue Cheese

Your new Italian weeknight staple: The elegant sauce practically creates itself in the time it takes to toss the pasta. Potatoes, pasta, green beans, and blue cheese are a riff on a Ligurian favorite.

Recipe: Linguine with Gorgonzola, Potatoes, Green Beans, and Sage

Flavor and texture contrasts give this salad extra appeal: Nutty pasta mingles with crisp green beans, strewn with bits of crunchy bacon and creamy Roquefort.

Recipe: Green Bean and Whole-grain Penne Salad

Creamy chunks of gorgonzola cheese melt into creamy risotto, perked up by slightly crisp radicchio in this soul-satisfying dish.

Recipe: Gorgonzola and Radicchio Risotto

Rich and dazzling flavor comes from bacon, smoked paprika, and chipotle chile powder. A crumble of blue cheese adds the perfect final touch.

Recipe: Smoky Beef Stew with Blue Cheese and Chives

Who needs a steakhouse when you've got your house? Picture it: The finest filet mignon, smeared with decadent blue-cheese butter, grilled in your own backyard. A ritzy night out, for the price of the ingredients. We'll take two.

Recipe: Tenderloin Steaks with Gorgonzola Butter

Here's a recipe to add to your go-to list: easy enough to pull off for a Tuesday night dinner but special enough to serve to guests.

Recipe: Gorgonzola-Stuffed Pork Chops with Pears

Broccoli-and-cheese have never had it so good: Everybody's favorite green veggie gets the royal treatment with a creamy blue cheese-spiked sauce. Make it up to a day ahead, then bring it to a potluck ― everybody will feel lucky.

Recipe: Gorgonzola Broccoli Casserole

At the end of a holiday dinner, cookbook author Deborah Madison likes to serve a big refreshing salad, passed around at the table. This one is based on a recipe in her her book Vegetable Literacy (Ten Speed Press, 2013).

Recipe: Belgian Endive Salad with Blue Cheese